Living Up To Him
by VoldyIsSexy
Summary: Albus Potter is both nervous and excited to follow in his father's footsteps at Hogwarts. But living up to his reputation is harder than it seems. Starting from the last sentence in Deathly Hallows
1. The Hogwarts Express

**I don't know how far this'll get, and sorry-it's yet another Albus Potter FanFic. I can just feel the vibes that this is the best one out there. :) Read and enjoy!**

Albus Potter took one last look at the disappearing figure of his father as the Hogwarts Express turned a corner out of the station. He turned toward the crowded carriage and his friend, Rose Weasley.

"Should we find a compartment?" Albus asked Rose.

"I think I can see an open one right there," she replied, pointing four doors down. Albus and Rose hauled their trunks to the open door. They lifted their trunks up over their heads to the storage racks.

"Excuse me?" a small voice behind them asked. They turned to see a tiny boy with a smattering of freckles under sea blue eyes standing in the doorway. "Do you mind if I sit with you? I don't really know anyone here and…" He brushed his dark hair from his face awkwardly.

"Of course you can sit with us," Rose smiled, holding out her hand. "I'm Rose Weasley, and this is Albus Potter." She shook the small boy's hand.

"Hey," Albus said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I'm Owen Higgs," He said shyly. Albus considered socializing with this kid.

"Here, let me help you with that," he said, reaching for Owen's trunk.

"Oh, no, I can get that-" He trailed off as Albus hoisted the heavy suitcase above their heads.

"No problem," Albus said nonchalantly. "So, where are you from?"

"I actually grew up in America," Owen replied, sitting down. "We moved to a suburb south of London about two years ago."

"So does that mean you are Muggle-born?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, I was raised by Muggles," He looked at his feet and blushed.

"Oh, that's ok," Albus said. "Rose's mother is Muggle-born, and she is an amazing witch. And my father was raised by his Muggle aunt and uncle. He didn't know he was a wizard." Or that he was incredibly famous.

"I've known I was a wizard since I was seven," Owen said to general surprise. "My aunt is a witch and she explained it all to me. Why my mother's bedroom flooded when I was mad at her, why my hair stood up straight whenever something scared me." He laughed.

"Oh. My father is half blood, pureblood father and Muggle-born mother. My mother is pureblood." Albus said.

"And also my father's sister," Rose countered. "My mother is, well, Muggle-born, but you already know that."

"By the way, call me Al," Albus said. "I'm only Albus when my parents are mad at me."

Suddenly their compartment was invaded by a blonde boy and a girl with piercing yellow eyes.

"So you're Albus Potter," the boy said, folding his arms across his chest. "I've heard a lot about your family from my father. I'm Scorpius Malfoy."

"I must say my father talks about your family a lot as well," Albus replied, getting to his feet. "But we haven't been properly introduced." He held out his hand. "Everyone calls me Al. This is Rose Weasley and Owen Higgs." He gestured to his friends.

Scorpius shook the outstretched hand. "This is my cousin on my mother's side, Astoria."

Albus nodded.

"I get my name and my looks from Auntie." She said, examining her nails without glancing at Albus.

"Weasley. I've heard of you as well," Scorpius looked at Rose. "And Higgs- wasn't your father a Slytherin?"

"Yes," Owen said in a small voice. Albus looked at him. Never once had he mentioned that his father was a wizard, let alone a Slytherin. "But my aunt was in Ravenclaw, and I want to follow her path." He sneaked a glance at Albus and Rose.

"Good luck with that," Scorpius whisked his cloak around his body and strolled out of the compartment.

"You said you were raised by muggles," Albus ventured after a silence.

"I was!" Owen protested. "My father disappeared when I was young. I was raised by my muggle mother and stepfather. The only thing that I know about him and Hogwarts was that he played Seeker for the Slytherin Qwidditch team."

"You could have told us," Rose murmured. Then, in a louder voice, she said "We seem to be getting close. I'll leave so you two can put your robes on." Rose had changed into her Hogwarts robes before she left her house that morning.

Owen and Albus pulled their robes on in silence. Albus knew that inside, he wanted to be friends with Owen. But he would have to open up more if he wanted to stick around.

Albus' brother, James, suddenly walked into their compartment. "You'll want to get your things ready now, make sure it's all fastened. You wouldn't want anything falling into the lake, would you?" He laughed and made his way to the corridor.

Albus felt his stomach turn. He'd forgotten all about the lake- and the giant squid.

The train jerked to a stop and students began to flood the corridor. Rose walked in and grabbed her trunk.

"We'd better get moving," she said anxiously.

The threesome made their way out onto the platform of Hogsmeade village. They saw a lantern and heard a voice calling for the first years. Albus looked at his friends and led the way to the gathering crowd of first year students.

**So, how did you like it? I did a lot of research on the lineage of Owen and Astoria. is the bomb. Astoria is the daughter of Daphne Greengrass, whose sister Astoria married Draco Malfoy. (I didn't make that up, J.K. Rowling did.) Owen is the son of Terence Higgs, who was at least a year older than Harry and played Seeker in Harry's first year. His aunt is actually his mother's sister, Marietta Edgecombe. (I made that one up.) His mom is not a Squib, Marietta was Muggle-born. (I made that up too) Reviews are always loved- it makes me feel like someone actually reads what I write.**


	2. Sorting Surprises

***Edit* sorry, I left something out the first time I wrote this, so it's not really an update, more of a revision. Ten points if you can spot the change!**

**So far- no reviews. Honestly folks? I thought my story was more interesting than this. I need suggestions for parents of the incoming students. Is there a favorite character you would like to see represented in the story?**

_Albus looked at his friends and led the way to the gathering crowd of first year students._

"Firs'…years," a slow deep voice said carefully. They spun around to see a giant towering above them. "Come…to…boats."

The scrawny first year wizards could do nothing but stare at the giant. Finally, Rose stepped forward.

"Are you Grawp?" she asked slowly. The giant nodded vigorously. Rose smiled. "My mother told me all about him! His brother used to teach Care of Magical Creatures and he was the Groundskeeper here!" she said to Albus. "My mother knows you, Grawp." Grawp grinned and wiggled his ears.

"Me…take…firs'…years…castle…wih'…boats," he said. The other first years seemed reassured by Rose taking to the giant and began to climb into the boats. There was a specially made vessel for Grawp which was at least five times the size of the other rowboats.

Rose pulled Albus and Owen into the nearest boat. Before they could climb in, an older student stopped them.

"Sorry, I'm a Prefect," she said. "I'm here to take your trunks. They were meant to be left by the train." Now that he looked, Albus noticed a rather large pile of suitcases and cages. They handed over their things. "Don't worry; they will be delivered straight to your dormitory as soon as you are Sorted."

The boats glided with surprising speed across the lake. They could see the school looming in the distance. All the lights were on in the castle and the night was beautiful and cloudless. It made travelling across the lake very relaxing. Albus almost forgot his nerves.

"Schoo'...coming…close…ready…to…leave," Grawp said from the front. They pulled into a tunnel leading under the school and clambered onto rocks and stone. Grawp led the way up onto school grounds and pounded on the school doors.

"Why, hello Grawp." A tall black man opened the door. "Are these the new students?"

"Yeh'…sir," he replied.

"Good, good. Well, I can take it from here," the man said. Grawp saluted him then lumbered off into the trees.

"I take it you've met Grawp then," the man smiled. "I'm Professor Thomas and I teach Defense Against the Dark Arts here. I'm also the Head of Gryffindor. Do come inside.

"The history of Hogwarts is a very long one, I can assure you. Here, you will live for the next nine months, and then the following seven years. You will live with your classmates in Houses. The four houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff…" Albus zoned out. He already knew all this- his parents had explained the whole process.

"…You will follow me single file. The whole process will only take a minute, and then you can have your start-of-term banquet. Any questions? No? Great! Come with me," Professor Thomas led the way from the small room through a pair of doors into the Great Hall.

Albus knew all about the vast size of it and the life-like ceiling, but the other students seemed to have not. They craned their necks and gasped at the floating candles. Other students watched the procession of first years. Albus saw James give him a thumbs-up.

The Sorting Hat was seated on the very stool on which it had sat for decades. It suddenly opened its mouth and burst into a song about the school and friendship. The Hall burst into applause when it finished.

Professor Thomas walked up the steps and motioned for the students to stay.

"Come forward when I call your name and the Sorting Hat will place you into your houses." He pulled out a long scroll.

"Ackerley, Robin!" A tiny girl with blond pigtails sat up on the stool. The moment the hat was placed on her head, it yelled, "Ravenclaw!" The entire Ravenclaw table burst into cheers as Robin ran to sit with her House.

"Anderson, David!"

"Hufflepuff!"

"Bulow, Troy!"

"Slytherin!"

"Carmichael, Anthony!"

"Hufflepuff!"

"Cicora, Tianna!"

"Ravenclaw!"

"Creevey, Samantha!"

"Hufflepuff!"

"Davis, Madeline!"

"Gryffindor!" The first Gryffindor was greeted with more applause than any other student.

"Dursley, Daisy!" That name sounded vaguely familiar. Albus strained his memory to think of where he'd heard it before…

"Gryffindor!" Albus looked over to investigate the Gryffindor table. He could see James sitting next to Dominique and Louis Weasley, their cousins, and Lucas Jordan, James' best friend. Lucas was flirting with a pretty redhead across from him. James seemed to be doing the same to her friend.

"Flint, Alexis!"

"Slytherin!"

"Higgs, Owen!" Owen walked up with his hands trembling. It seemed he was more nervous than he thought he would be. It took a moment for the Hat to decide.

"Gryffindor!" Owen let out a sigh. He looked sort of downcast, like he wanted to be a Ravenclaw. He made his way to sit next to Madeline Davis.

"Howard, Madison!"

"Hufflepuff!"

"Jordan, Tanya!"

"Gryffindor!"

"Kirke, Miranda!"

"Slytherin!"

"Lehman, Samuel!"

"Ravenclaw!"

"Magnus, Savannah!"

"Gryffindor!"

"Malfoy, Scorpius!" The blonde boy made his way to the pedestal with a smug look on his face, and turned his body toward the Slytherin table.

"Gryffindor!" Scorpius' mouth dropped open and his face turned red. Professor Thomas had to ask him to join the Gryffindor table. Albus looked at Rose with a questioning look on his face. She shrugged, equally perplexed.

"Nott, Astoria!" Scorpius' cousin walked up to the stool.

"Slytherin!" She walked away and stared at Scorpius like he was a nest of maggots living in her dresser. He put his head down ashamedly.

"Peterson, Grant!"

"Ravenclaw!"

"Potter, Albus!" Albus walked to the stool and heard the mutterings of his future classmates. Albus Potter? As in Harry Potter's son? As in related to the troublemaker, James? The Hat was placed on his head. He could hear it muttering.

_Potter? And also a Weasley, I see…to many of them, they breed like rabbits. I can see a great wizard in you…you'd be best in _"GRYFFINDOR!" The table exploded in cheers. Albus hurried over and sat next to James.

"Can you believe it, Al?" he beamed. "That Malfoy git is in Gryffindor! Oh, he's going to hear it from his parents…" Albus looked down the table at Scorpius. He was busy staring at his hands. He looked ready to cry. Albus stood and sat with the boy. Scorpius glared at him, but didn't say anything. Albus looked up to watch the rest of the Sorting.

Pritchard, Thomas was made a Slytherin, followed by Rochester, William to Ravenclaw. A Smith, Kaitlyn and a Stebbins, Mitchell were both made Hufflepuffs, while Skively, Rochelle was inducted to Ravenclaw. Albus started thinking about food and what he wanted to see on the table. Shepherd's Pie sounded delicious…

"Weasley, Rose!" brought his attention back to the sorting. She walked confidently toward Professor Thomas. The Sorting Hat fell below her eyes and the Hall laughed.

"Gryffindor!" She lifted the hat off her head and beamed. Albus applauded as loudly as he could for Rose. She ran to sit on his other side.

The Sorting ended with Zambini, Marcus ("Slytherin!"). Then, a very old lady sitting in the center of the table of teachers rose to address the crowd.

**So, how did you like the Sorting? And I didn't want to make up a whole song for the Sorting Hat, so I just made it look like Albus wasn't paying attention. Review this time?**


	3. A Feast for a King

**Dreadfully sorry about the delay in updates. If you haven't already, make sure to read the revised version of chapter 2, I had to add on a suggestion of my mum's. I know, Mum is telling me what to write, but I liked her idea, so now it's in the story.**

_Then, a very old lady sitting in the center of the table of teachers rose to address the crowd._

"Welcome back to a new year at Hogwarts," she said, her voice surprisingly loud for such a frail body. "I do not want to keep you from your dinner, so eat up!" She clapped her hands and immediately the tables were filled with platters containing every sort of food imaginable. Albus lunged for the plate of Shepherd's Pie, which was conveniently placed right in front of him.

Scorpius was staring at his empty dish. It seemed as though he was wondering if he could dive into the reflected universe and never return.

"Aw, come on, Scorpius," Albus said, reaching for a leg of chicken. His father always said he had inherited the Weasley appetite. "It won't be that bad, being a Gryffindor. Come on, who wants to live under the lake anyway?"

"My father's going to murder me," he said without moving his gaze. "Even if he doesn't, he will make me transfer to another school. Probably Durmstrang." He shuddered.

"You never know," Rose said kindly. "Maybe he'll be proud!" Scorpius slammed his head onto the table.

"You don't get it," his voice was muffled by the table. "Your father jokes about disinheriting you if you don't make it into Gryffindor. With mine, it's no laughing matter. You either make it into Sytherin or don't bother coming home for Christmas. I can expect a Howler tomorrow morning." Albus looked at Rose.

"Just leave him be," she whispered, before turning to engage in conversation with Madeline Davis. Owen, meanwhile, seemed to be enjoying himself more and more the longer he spent a Gryffindor.

Albus glanced up at the staff table and shoved a roll in his mouth. He spotted Neville Longbottom deep in conversation with Professor Thomas. Thomas was to the right of the old witch in the middle, and Neville was on his left. On Neville's left was a centaur, probably Firenze, the Divination teacher. On the old witch's left was the half-giant, Hagrid, of whom Albus had heard a lot about. Albus put another roll in his mouth and studied the table for others he could know. Not noticing anyone, he returned his attention back to the Gryffindor table.

"Hi, Abus!" A curly haired girl walked over to sit across from him.

"Hi, Lucy," Albus said halfheartedly. James' age, Lucy was the least favorite of his cousins.

"Isn't this exciting, Al? You and Rose, finally at Hogwarts," she beamed at Rose, who acted as if she hadn't noticed Lucy's presence. "We're going to have so much fun together! Just wait, we can have study sessions together when you start learning things!" she gasped. "We should start a club! Only people who can prove that they're closely related to the Weasley's can join! Oh, this is going to be so much fun!" She bounced off to join her friends.

"What are the chances of that club having members?" Owen laughed.

"Slim to none," Albus replied. "Nobody in our family likes Lucy. I feel bad for her sometimes, but she ended up finding people to stick with her." He glanced down the table at Lucy, leaning in with her friends, having an intense conversation.

Albus followed the immense first course with a landslide of desserts, before all the food and dishes were magically cleared away. The wizened old witch stood to speak again.

"I expect you all enjoyed your first meal back here at Hogwarts," she said, smiling. "I am Professor McGonagall, your headmistress, and I have a few start-of-term announcements before you can head off to bed. Quidditch tryouts will be held on the third Saturday of September for all second through seventh years. Keep in mind you may only try out for your House's team. The first visit to Hogsmeade for third to seventh years will not be until October, so don't bother asking." She smiled good-naturedly.

"Schedules will be given to you tomorrow after breakfast and before classes begin. Please report to your Head of House to receive this year's list of classes. Now, Prefects, please lead the first years to your common rooms and good-night to all. Pip, pip!"

There was a mass movement and all the students rose to exit the Great Hall. Rose grabbed Albus' hand as not to get lost.

"Gryffindor first years, over here!" The Prefects were shepherding the youngest students into a pack. Rose pulled Albus to the growing group of students.

"Is this it? Everyone here?" Molly Weasley, Lucy's sister, was the girl Prefect for Gryffindor. Her boyfriend, Alexander McLaggen was the boy Prefect. Percy had been thrilled when his daughter was made a Prefect. "Now all you need is to make Head Girl!" he'd said through tears.

Molly led the small throng of Gryffindors through the winding staircases of the school. Most of the paintings were asleep by now, and Albus couldn't blame them. He felt dead on his feet. Harry had told Albus that the same painting had marked the entrance to the Gryffindor common room for years. Sure enough, the Fat Lady was still there, asking for the password.

"_Extraho spiritus,_" Molly said confidently. The painting swung open to reveal a roaring fire and the chairs Harry, Ron, and Hermione had loved so much.

Rose ran off to join Madeline Davis, Tanya Jordan, Daisy Dursley, and Savannah Magnus in the girl's dormitory. Albus tromped up the stairs to the boy's dormitory with Owen, Scorpius, and a sandy haired boy and a tall, dark haired boy whose names he didn't remember.

Albus noticed right away that his trunk and belongings were already at the foot of a bed that was meant to be his. The quilt his grandmother knitted him was already laid out on the bed.

"'Scuse me?" a voice behind him said. "I think that's mine," The sandy haired boy was pointing to a picture frame with a photo of a little girl and a golden retriever. Her parents were standing with their arms around each other in the background, laughing. Albus picked it up and handed it to the boy.

"Albus Potter," he said, holding out his hand. "But you can call me Al."

"Ian Finnigan," the boy shook his hand, smiling. "Is your dad Harry Potter?"

Albus grinned. "Yeah, I get that question a lot."

"That's cool," he said. Ian had a very strong Irish accent. "I think our dads were in the same year together, Seamus Finnigan?"

"I think Dad _has_ talked about a Seamus," Albus said, scanning his memory.

"Right, so you already know everyone?" Ian said looking around the room. Scorpius was lying on his bed, still in his robes and on top of the blankets. Owen was arranging various pictures and postcards on his nightstand. The dark haired boy was rummaging in his trunk.

"Almost everyone," Albus replied. "Do you know who that is?" he added in a hushed tone, gesturing toward the dark haired boy.

"You know, you are not very good at talking quietly," the boy stood and faced Albus and Ian, leaning up against his bed. He had a very distinct Eastern Europe accent, Bulgaria maybe, or Romania. "My name is Dmitri Tzvetkov. I am of Bulgarian descent."

"How did you come to Hogwarts then?" Owen asked, joining the conversation. "It isn't exactly close to Bulgaria, is it?"

"It is not," Dmitri replied, shrugging. "My parents, they want me to have a better education and Durmstrang vas not vat they vanted for me." He turned away as if that ended their conversation and climbed into his bed. Ian and Owen followed suit, turning the lights off as they went.

Albus walked to his bed and gazed out the window. A full moon cast an amazing reflection across the lake and Albus knew exactly why his father had loved Hogwarts so much.

**Huh, huh? I really like the character of Dmitri, even if his name is hard to pronounce. (I don't even know!) Thank you to my devoted four or so fans, I love you. :)**


	4. Howlers and Herbology

**So sorry for the delay in updates, new school year and all, plus finals…meh. Not so much fun. Yay! More people have warmed up to the idea, and my story is blossoming! Hurrah!**

_Albus walked to his bed and gazed out the window. A full moon cast an amazing reflection across the lake and Albus knew exactly why his father had loved Hogwarts so much._

A little green man on a broomstick was flying about the room the next morning. It smacked into the side of Albus's head, waking him up.

"What the-" he started. Blinking his eyes several times, he noticed Ian sitting up in bed, fully clothed in his Gryffindor robes. The wand in his hand was directed at the flying toy, which Albus now realized was a player on the Ireland quidditch team.

"Mornin' Al," Ian smiled. The Irish Chaser had just slammed into Owen, who promptly toppled out of bed with a start. Albus and Ian laughed, awaking the other boys. It appeared that Scorpius had slept in his robes, in the same spot he had fallen the night before.

Dmitri yawned and stumbled out of bed to his trunk. Albus noticed a thin ponytail leading off the back of the boy's head.

After much hubbub, including Owen accidentally taking Ian's socks, the Irish man cartwheeling across the room after a violent slap from Dmitri, and the entire contents of Albus's trunk zooming skyward, Ian, Owen, and Dmitri headed down to the common room and breakfast. Albus held back, watching Scorpius, who hadn't moved.

"You coming?" He asked. Scorpius stirred, turning to stare at Albus.

"I don't want to be publically humiliated," he moaned. "I'd rather stay here."

"Don't be stupid," Albus moved to pull Scorpius out of bed. "You're over exaggerating. It won't be as bad as you think." By some miracle of God, he rolled out of bed, groaning. Albus paused to make sure Scorpius would make it the rest of the way out of the dormitory.

The Hall was crowded with sleepy-eyed students trying to find their way to their friends at the tables. Albus spotted Rose talking with James at the Gryffindor table. He walked toward them and heard the last half of their conversation.

"…and you won't have Professor Jones or Firenze, they're classes aren't for first and second years. You should have Neville though, and Professor Thomas is really cool; oh, hey Al!" James looked up at Albus and his friends. "Who you with?" he said, glancing at Owen and Ian.

"Oh, this is Owen Higgs and Ian Finnigan," Albus replied, gesturing to the other boys. "Ian's father was friends with Dad at Hogwarts, isn't that cool?" James just shook his head, rolling his eyes. He turned to talk with Lucas. Albus went to sit next to Rose.

Halfway into eggs and bacon, the mail arrived. Hundreds of owls suddenly rained down on the dining students. Albus recognized the family owl, Petunia. The name was his father's doing, as it had been a birthday present the year previous. There were two letters in her talons, one for James and one for Albus. He handed James his letter, but before Albus could open his own, a great explosion sounded out across the Great Hall.

"…_landing yourself in_ _Gryffindor, how could you? I expected more of my son! You can expect to be turned away at our door if you ever try to enter the house of Malfoy ever again!" _Scorpius' face was bright red and he looked as though he wanted to vanish into nothingness. The Hall was silent as they realized that not all Howlers were funny.

Slowly, general chatter returned to the Great Hall, but the Gryffindor table was quiet. Scorpius rose and walked out of the Great Hall, muttering something about a bathroom. Wanting to distract himself, Albus opened his letter.

_Dear Al,_

_How's Hogwarts? Did James flush your head down the toilet like he said he would? All's good here. On our way back from the train station, dad ran a red light. He Confunded the officer that pulled him over as not to get a ticket. Mum told him not to, but I thought it was funny. We ate lunch at the Scamanders. Luna and Rolf and Mum and Dad talked for a really long time and left me to play with Lysander and Lorcan. They're still too young for us to have any fun. They just act like they see Crumple-Horned Snorkacks out to get me. I swear Luna is an odd bird, to teach her kids about those things. I had a sleepover at Uncle George and Auntie Angelina's and Roxanne and I gave each other makeovers. Uncle George even let us do one for him! Ok, Mum is telling me to stop because she wants to write something._

_ Don't let James flush your head down the toilet._

_ Love,_

_ Lily_

_Dear Albus,_

_Do you like Hogwarts? Have you made any new friends yet? Your father wants to know if you've picked any fights yet. Is that Malfoy boy giving you trouble? How's Rosie? I assume Lily's informed you on everything interesting that's happened since you left- yes, she has. What's this about James flushing your head down the toilets? You can hex him if he tries, you have my permission. The Bat-Bogey Hex is always a good one. Say hello to Neville for us._

_ Love,_

_ Mum_

Albus folded up the letter and stuck it in his pocket. He would start a reply later that night. He gave Petunia the crusts from his toast.

"I like your owl," Daisy Dursley was stroking Petunia's feathers. "What's her name?"

"Petunia," Albus said, handing Daisy some toast for the owl.

"That's my grandmother's name," she said absentmindedly. The food was cleared away from the table and students began walking toward the exit and their classes.

"I see Professor Thomas, we're supposed to go to him," Rose said, hauling Albus in the direction of their Head of House.

"Hello Mr. Potter, Ms. Weasley," Professor Thomas smiled as he greeted them. "I look forward to seeing you in my class." He handed them their schedules, which he had conjured out of nowhere.

"We have Herbology with the Ravenclaws first," Rose said, glancing at her list of classes. "We'd better get moving; we're clogging the hallways." Indeed they were. The entire Gryffindor house was trying to squeeze around them.

The Herbology greenhouses were divided into three based on how dangerous the plants were. The first years started out in Greenhouse 1.

"Hi Albus, Rose," Neville seemed happy to see them. "How are your mum and dad? I haven't seen them in a long time."

"They're doing great," said Rose, smiling. "Auntie Ginny told us to give you our love."

"She's always been so kind," Neville turned away to address the class. "Gather 'round, first years! My name is Professor Longbottom and I am your Herbology teacher." He went on to describe how and why Herbology was important to wizards.

"Now, can anyone tell me what kind of plant this is?" He gestured to the potted plant in front of him. It looked like a gray cactus, but there were boils where spines should have been. Rose and a pretty Ravenclaw girl raised their hands. Not wanting to pick favorites, Neville called on the Ravenclaw.

"That's **_Mimbulus mimbletonia_**," she said. Neville looked pleased.

"Very good, ten points for Ravenclaw, miss…?"

"Willard. Melanie Willard," she said. She had red-brown hair that fell to her elbows and very bright green eyes, like Albus.

"Willard… are you by any chance related to the Auror, Simon Willard?"

"No, sir, my parents are Muggles," she looked down.

"Very impressive, and yet you knew the name of a very rare magical plant? Indeed, very impressive." Neville looked as if he was debating whether or not to grant Ravenclaw more points. "Well, that was just a pop quiz to see if anyone had opened their books. Today, we'll be working with aconite. Can anyone tell me other names for it? Yes, mister…?"

"Lehman, sir. Sam Lehman. It can also be called monkshood or wolfsbane." A muscular, blonde Ravenclaw boy answered his question.

"Very good, ten points for Ravenclaw," Neville said. "Aconite is extremely poisonous if ingested, but it is very useful in many potions, such as the Wolfsbane potion used to keep werewolves tame and sane in their wolf state. But we'll save that for your potions class. Today, we'll just be re-potting it."

Rose, who loved gardening, enjoyed the class; Albus and Ian however, whose mothers and sisters had always done the gardening while the boy played in the dirt, were less pleased. Ian called the class "a thorough waste of time," and got five points deducted from Gryffindor.

It seemed to Albus that Ravenclaws were more set out for spell casting that gardening, as they seemed to struggle. One boy dropped a pot and the contents exploded everywhere. Fat, pink pods burst suddenly into flowers as soon as the pot hit the ground. Neville later explained that the contents were not aconite, but puffapods that he had been saving for a later class of third years.

The first years walked away from the class still picking dirt from their fingernails. Most of the Ravenclaws complained that this was ruining their ability to cast spells, but Albus had other things on his mind.

"What do we have next, Al? …Al? …AL!" Rose was yelling in Albus' ear; he had to jerk his head away from the image of the back of Melanie Willard's head. "What are you staring at?"

"Nothing," Albus said hurriedly. "I think we have Defense Against the Dark Arts next."

"Well you'd better stop staring at Melanie and get yourself over there; we took too long in the greenhouses and we've got three minutes to get to class!" Albus did a double take and picked up his pace to get to the next class.

**Sorry there was only one class, but I didn't want it to get too long. Should I write all his classes or just a few? Review your answer!**


	5. An Encounter With Slytherins

**Hurrah! I check my email two hours after posting chapter 4 and I've got 12 new messages from FanFiction! Y'all make me happy. **

**At Hogwarts, 7 classes are required for first years to take: Astronomy, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Potions, Transfiguration, and History of Magic. I'm thinking I'll cover Herbology, (obviously) DADA, Potions, and Transfiguration. Maybe there'll be a Broomstick Lesson thrown in somewhere too. **

_Albus did a double take and picked up his pace to get to the next class._

Albus and the other Gryffindor first years hurried through the maze that was the Grand Staircase to find Professor Thomas's Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. They made it in just before the bell to start class tolled.

Professor Thomas was standing with his back to the class, writing on the blackboard. With the abrupt arrival of ten students, he turned to lean against the board and looked over the class.

"Good morning, first years," he said with a smile. "My name is Professor Thomas, but I believe you already know this. We'll start with roll, and then review what we'll be learning in this class this term. Is Troy Bulow here?"

A Filipino-looking, dark haired boy raised his hand in recognition. _So this class is with the Slytherins,_ Albus thought. He glanced quickly at Scorpius, who was sitting as close to the wall and as far from the Slytherins as possible. Albus felt sorry for the boy. Not wanting to stare, Albus turned to examine the Slytherins. They weren't altogether unsightly; some of them looked flat out nice. Miranda Kirke, who had just responded to her name, was actually very pretty. _So much for James's description of the Slytherin lot: ugly and mean._

"Albus Potter?"

"Here," Albus raised a hand lazily. The last was once again, Marcus Zambini. Professor Thomas rolled up the list of students and made it vanish with a flick of his wand and a small _pop!_ Half the class gasped in amazement: this was the first display of magic they'd seen that day. Thomas looked pleased with himself.

"This year, we'll mostly run over the basics of defensive magic and spells. We will read each of your textbooks, but only discuss things mentioned. Mostly everything else will end up being covered in later years of your studies with me. Please open your book, _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_ and read the preface."

Rose and the other Gryffindor girls promptly opened their books, but Albus just turned to talk to Ian.

Halfway through a game of hangman scribbled into Ian's textbook, they noticed letters gradually being added and missing body parts for the hanging man being drawn in. Albus jerked his head up, only to find Professor Thomas standing over the two of them, his wand drawing out the remainder of the word. The class was laughing.

"What?" He smiled. "I guessed the phrase: it was 'this book sucks.' Come on, boys, do you think I haven't seen this before?" He shook his head in mock disappointment. "Ian, I thought your father would have taught you better."

Ian grinned. "Sorry, Dean- I mean, Professor." Thomas winked at Ian before moving on to break up the tic-tac-toe game between Marcus Zambini and Troy Bulow. Ian grinned again at Albus. "Dean and my dad were best friends when they were here. I've known him since I was small."

"That's cool," said Albus. "Professor Longbottom, you know, who teaches Herbology? I've known him for forever, too. He was great friends with my parents here, and worked with my dad for a while. I went to his wedding a couple summers ago."

"Shh!" an annoyed-looking Madeline Davis had her finger to her lips. "Some of us actually want to do what we're told."

Ian threw a sly wink at Madeline and she turned away, disgusted. He grinned at Albus.

"It was a nice try," Albus shrugged. All of a sudden, a very short, dumpy witch bustled into the room. She ran to Professor Thomas and whispered something in his ear. He seemed to be holding back a smile.

"Class, stay put and continue reading while I handle something for Professor Dobbs," he said, still restraining a laugh. "Just remember- as a sixth-year in Care of Magical Creatures, it's a bad idea to aggravate a kappa unless you wish to be dragged underwater. I won't be long." And with that, he quickly followed Dobbs out of the room. Immediately, the class stood up and started chatting. Albus noticed someone approaching to his left.

"So you're Harry Potter's kid?" Marcus Zambini was standing over him with Troy Bulow close behind.

"Yeah," said Albus, standing. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing," replied Zambini with an arrogant aura. "I was just wondering." He began to turn away. Bulow, however leaned in to Miranda Kirke and whispered, "Who's Harry Potter?"

Zambini spun toward him. "How can you not know who Harry Potter is?" he sounded both incredulous and amazed.

"I told you, man," said Bulow. "I was raised by my Dad. He's a Muggle, but I know my mum was a witch. Neither of us has heard of a Harry Potter." He looked around for some help, but the rest of the class was staring at him with as much disbelief.

"It's OK," whispered Daisy. "I don't know who Harry Potter is, but I'm almost positive I've heard the name before…"

"I was raised by Muggles," said Madeline quickly. "My mum was a witch too, but she died a long time ago. I was raised away from the Wizarding world, which my grandparents thought would be best." She looked proud of herself for speaking up.

"Here, this is Harry Potter." Thomas Pritchard pulled a Harry Potter chocolate frog card out of his pocket. "I've got at least two of them all, if anyone wants to trade," he added to the class.

"Do you have Ron Weasley?" Rose looked up from the book for the first time. Tom pulled Albus's uncle from the same pocket. Rose grinned. "He's my dad. He likes to find out how many people actually own a 'Ron Weasley' card. I'll have to write him."

Zambini scowled at Bulow, who was reading the mini-biography of Harry Potter on the back of the card. "Come on, you," he said, pulling the card from Bulow's hands and thrusting it back at Tom.

It was just in time, too. Professor Thomas strode into the classroom moments after Bulow and Zambini had taken their seats once again.

"Once again, class" he said. "Do not, under any circumstances, try to force a kappa into a goldfish tank."

Madeline Davis politely raised her hand. "Sir, what exactly is a kappa?"

"I'm glad you asked," said Thomas. "Because that is part of your reading assignment for the week. Chapters one and two of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ are to be due on Friday of this week. Expect an essay over the subjects of the chapters!" He had to hurriedly finish his sentence, as the bell to end class had rung and his class was standing to leave.

Albus walked with Ian to lunch in the Great Hall. Owen hung back, meaning to ask Madeline about her half-blood heritage that was so similar to his. The rest of the Gryffindor first years walked in a big pack. Unfortunately, even with all ten of them, they struggled to find the Great Hall. By the time they arrived, most of the school was finished or nearly finished with the lunch of cheddar-and-broccoli soup.

Albus shoveled soup into his mouth and tried to sneak a glance at his schedule to see the next class. It looked like it said _History of Magic, Professor Binns- 12:00 to 2:00_, but it could very well end at 1, or even 3. He couldn't tell, as Ian had "accidentally" spilled soup all over it. While he was occupied with punching Ian in the arm, Victoire Weasley came up behind him and snatched the schedule out of his hand.

"_Tergeo_," she said, and the spell siphoned off the spilled soup. She handed it back to Albus with a wink. "How's your first day been?"

"Pretty good," Albus replied shyly. "We had Neville this morning, and just had Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"_Bonne_," she replied in French. "Have fun with History of Magic!" She walked off to join her friends. All the Gryffindor boys were staring at Albus.

"How do you know _her_?" asked Ian. He and the other boys were obviously very taken with Albus and Rose's oldest cousin.

"She's my cousin," Albus replied, happy for the attention.

"How is a guy that looks like that related to a girl like her?" Ian snorted.

Albus laughed. "My mum and her dad are brother and sister. Her mum is part Veela."

Owen opened his mouth to reply, but just then several things happened at once. Madeline Davis sat down very close to Owen, Scorpius took the seat across from Albus, and a big ball of what looked like mashed potatoes soared over the place where Scorpius' head had been moments ago to hit Albus' face with full force.

Albus gasped in surprise and everyone sitting by him spinning around to look at the Slytherin table, where Marcus Zambini was sitting with a couple of fifth years, laughing and looking very pleased with himself. Simultaneously, Ian seized two large spoonfuls of gravy and threw them toward the Slytherin table. James, who had been sitting close to the boys, pulled out his wand and "helped" the gravy make it all the way across the vast hall. The spoons zoomed toward Zambini and his fifth year friends and landed with a satisfying thud on the boys' heads.

This time it was the Gryffindor's turn to laugh, as the boys sat steaming under a layer of the sauce. They stood up in unison with Ian and Albus, but just then Professor McGonagall hurried into the room.

"Stop, stop, stop right there young men," she said, looking furious. "All five of you, in my office." Albus gave a sideways glance at James, who had conveniently ducked behind Lucas Jordan. He stood up with Ian, and they left the hall with McGonagall and the Slytherins.

They walked in silence with the headmistress to a statue at the end of a hall. She approached it, and without stopping, said "Hibernia" and the statue moved to reveal a large spiral staircase. The headmistress turned to make sure the boys were still following her, and walked up the stairs.

**So, my apologies for the delay in updates (again; I feel like I'm always apologizing for this.) Anyway, suggestions for a punishment, anyone? I promise to update sooner next time.**


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